A Ride With The Devil Is Never Free
by missgaley
Summary: MCU. Pre-TWS. Strike Team: Delta has been separated and the Black Widow has a new partner. Captain America is about to face the world with new eyes. A double agent, a sinking ship, abduction, and trust issues... their first mission together is not what they had planned. [Steve/Nat friendship, possible romance.]
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

* * *

_"When you come back you will not be you, and I will not be I." — E.M. Forster_

* * *

They were coming down the ramp of the quinjet when Natasha finally exploded at him. Well, when Natasha Romanoff was concerned, an 'explosion' was really just a rare show of exceptional irritation. Nonetheless, Clint Barton gave the Russian assassin a wide berth, just in case she suddenly felt it necessary to hit him.

"C4? What the hell were you thinking?"

"It was a backup plan and, in case you didn't notice, it worked!"

"But C4? Where did you even _get it_?"

"I, uh—"

Thankfully, Clint was saved from having to answer that question by Maria Hill, who was jogging toward them across the hangar bay. She regarded the pair politely but her expression was otherwise exasperated and she looked as if she had just been pulled from something very important just to come to speak to them.

"Fury wants you in his office." She looked pointedly at them both. "Now."

"What? We don't even get a shower fir—"

"_Now_."

A nudge from Natasha kept Clint from arguing any further. She grabbed his elbow and tugged him along, although she knew he would be at her side regardless of his complaints. About halfway to Fury's office, she dropped his arm, giving him a sidelong glance. She was worried, Clint could tell. One look was all he needed. To anyone else it would look as if she were giving him the same cold, stony look she gave everyone. But he saw the way her lips pressed together slightly and knew she was biting her lower lip. It was one of her very few tells.

Fury rarely called them for an immediate debrief. He generally respected his agents' wishes to at least clean up after a long mission and, honestly, it was more likely that he just didn't want them tracking in dirt all over his office floor. The man did have standards after all.

The agents continued down another hallway then up an elevator. They were currently operating out of the Triskelion in D.C., which was a labyrinth of its own design. When they stepped off the elevator, Natasha was surprised to see Steve Rogers — more colloquially known as Captain America — standing out in the hallway next to Fury's office.

"Rogers," she greeted, giving him a sideways look that clearly said 'what are you doing here?'.

"Ma'am." Steve just shrugged in response. He made no move to enter the office before he was summoned.

Natasha just brushed it off and didn't even bother to knock before stepping into Fury's office. Clint followed close behind, giving Steve a curious look before closing the door behind him. Natasha Romanoff and Maria Hill were probably two of the only agents who could burst into Fury's office without reprimand. Even Clint wouldn't have dared. But as long as Natasha's face was the first one to come through that door, they were safe.

"Agents Barton, Romanoff."

Fury was barely looking at them but nodded to the chairs in front of his desk, indicating for them to sit. When there was no movement, he looked up fully and then took in the state of his two agents, covered in dirt and who knew what else. He just made a quiet 'hmph' of agreement. Best they not soil the upholstery. He stood, clasping his hands behind his back as he did so. He stared at his agents for a moment longer, his one visible eye void of any emotion although he was clearly thinking very hard about something. Then he spoke:

"Effective immediately, I am splitting up Strike Team: Delta."

As expected, his words were met with cries of outrage. Well, several cries of outrage that came from Clint Barton exclusively.

"Sir, if this is about the C4, I can explain—"

"What the hell are you talking about, Barton? You know what? I don't want to know. Put it in your report."

Natasha just seemed to eye Fury critically. She was trying to work out why he would make such a decision and why so suddenly. But Fury knew her too well. She was seething inside — being separated from her long-time partner right after they had picked up the pieces from New York together would not be taken well. But she would come around faster than Barton.

"Sir, are we allowed to know why?"

Her tone was clipped but polite. Fury supposed they deserved an explanation. After all, they were his best. And the decision had not been made lightly. But things around S.H.I.E.L.D. were changing and this was only the first of many.

"Let it be known, I am not disbanding Strike Team: Delta permanently. For highly classified and covert missions, you will continue as you always have. I need my best. But, that said, I can no longer afford to have the two of you paired together constantly."

He paused. When there was no interruption — even Barton was holding his tongue — he opted to continue on.

"You _are _my best. And after the battle of New York, we've needed our best checking around every corner to ensure nothing like that happens again. I'm wasting resources by partnering you up on missions that either of you could handle solo. Whether you like it or not, you're both needed elsewhere, separately. Besides, both of you have worked solo before. This won't come as anything new to you."

"Sir, with all due respect—" Fury just raised an eyebrow and Clint glowered. Natasha seemed to pick up on the rising tension in the room almost before it began and put her hand on the back of Clint's elbow again, her light touch a signal for him to stop. Clint looked incredulous, turning to his partner in dismay. "Nat, come on, you know we work better as a team."

"Fury's right," she stated with a shrug. "S.H.I.E.L.D. has been changing around us. It's not a real surprise that this is the next step."

"Nat—"

"Agent Romanoff is right, Barton. And it's a done deal. I need both your talents and I need them in different places at the same time."

Natasha seemed satisfied with Fury's reasoning and that he had expected from her. From Barton, he had expected exactly what he was getting — a glare that could shake the knees of any regular citizen. A regular citizen, however, Nicholas J. Fury was not.

"Agent Barton, you're dismissed. I'll need you for a debrief at 1700 hours where we can discuss your new assignment from there. I need Agent Romanoff for a little while longer."

Clint looked ready to say something out of line but one look from Natasha was enough to make him sigh, shake his head, and turn toward the door.

"Come find me later, Nat."

She nodded.

As Clint made his way out of the office, he was intercepted by Maria Hill, who had been just about to knock on the door. She cleared her throat, stepping out of the way to let Clint pass, then poked her head into the room.

"How did it go, sir?"

"As well as I'd expected. Better maybe. You can send Rogers in now."

Maria's head disappeared back into the hallway and the door re-opened to reveal Steve Rogers, dressed in casual attire with a motorbike helmet slung under his arm. He looked between Fury and Natasha, brow furrowing, then glanced behind him toward the door Clint had just passed through, still visibly irritated.

"You called me in, sir?"

"Yes, Rogers, take a seat. Romanoff… just stay where you are."

Steve looked between them and the chair and after a lingering glance in Natasha's direction, he shook his head.

"If it's all the same, sir, if Agent Romanoff will be standing, I'd prefer to stand too."

Fury could have sworn he saw Natasha's lips twitch with amusement but the look she shot Rogers was still completely neutral. Steve's dated way around women was certainly nothing to balk at but it was just that — polite yet dated. Fury cleared his throat, trying to get the attention of the two other occupants of the room back on him. Both sets of eyes were on him in seconds.

"I'm well aware you and Captain Rogers have been acquainted, if only for a short time," Fury said, looking at Natasha. Then he looked over at Steve. "You'll be partnered with Agent Romanoff for the next little while. I'll admit, I've been holding you back since New York. It's not every day you're dealing with a man out of time. But now it's time to really put you out in the field, test your skills in the real world. A lot of it is still new to you and, as you've seen, a lot has changed. Romanoff can catch you up. No one understands how the world works like she does."

There was a dark undertone to Fury's words and Steve glanced over at Natasha. Her face was an impenetrable mask, void of all emotion. He sighed; he had a feeling he was going to be dealing with a lot of that. There was a long silence before Steve finally spoke up again.

"Sir?" He wondered if there was anything else the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. wanted from them.

A small 'hmph' could be heard then Fury straightened his long coat and looked back at the red-haired agent standing across from him.

"Romanoff, debrief at o'-eight-hundred. Bring Rogers with you. We'll be discussing the specifics of your next assignment. Until then… take a shower. Meet Rogers in the cafeteria. Might be good for you two to re-acquaint yourselves."

With that, it was clear they were both dismissed.

* * *

**Author's Note: **I like to keep these brief because I believe author's notes distract from the story and insert myself where I should not be. If I am doing my job right and writing well, I should not need to clarify anything this way. However, I would like to clarify a couple of things from the start because the summaries are not near long enough and I feel like this is more of a disclaimer than anything. This takes place in the MCU, using references from the movies, director's commentaries, writer's commentaries, and historical sources. Seriously, I have five pages of notes taken from The Winter Soldier commentary alone. That being said, while I try to stay close to the portrayal of the characters in the films, as written by those working within the MCU, I do reserve the right to incorporate my own headcanons or some comic canon to fill in the blanks not yet revealed in the cinematic universe. This story will be my version of what happened between The Avengers and CA:TWS and how Steve and Natasha came to be partners and friends. I am working my way towards romance but it will be slow. That is your only warning.

Now that the heavy stuff is out of the way, thank you for reading this little teaser of what's to come and please favourite, follow, or review because that's what keeps me going.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

* * *

_"We know what we are, but not what we may be." — William Shakespeare_

* * *

Steve sat in the cafeteria, trying not to look somewhat intimidated by the stares he was getting. The whispers of "Captain America" and "is that Captain Rogers?" kept interrupting his meal and he was having a hard time tuning them out. He was not unfamiliar with S.H.I.E.L.D. and its bases and a few personnel but others were not as familiar with him — or, more correctly, his presence. He was a national icon. Everyone knew who he was. And it still made him somewhat uncomfortable.

Steve Rogers was not always Captain America. Once in awhile, he put on the suit and the cowl but the rest of the time he was just that skinny kid from Brooklyn who was just… not so skinny anymore. When he had been in Germany, he had been Captain America. When he was in New York, seventy years later, he was Captain America. But right now, sitting in this cafeteria, he was just Steve Rogers, even if he didn't quite know who that was in this day and age. But no matter what year it was, Steve Rogers just wanted to eat in peace.

He sighed, knowing that was not going to happen any time soon. He straightened his shoulders, looked around, and gave polite nods to everyone that was staring. He didn't blame them. He was sure that if he had seen an icon of his day, he might have reacted the same way at one time. It was just different being on the receiving end.

Thankfully, there was a hush that came over the cafeteria when someone else walked in. Steve glanced toward the door and couldn't help the small smile that came after. Natasha Romanoff had a way of making her presence known without having to do anything except step over the threshold. The chatter resumed but the lull had been obvious. She inspired awe when she walked into a room and, if Steve was honest with himself, a little bit of terror as well.

She spotted him immediately and crossed the cafeteria, plopping down across from him casually. Her hair was still damp and loosely curling around her shoulders after her shower. Steve noted she seemed happier after washing off all the dirt and grime. Well, he couldn't really tell but he had a feeling that was the case. After all, that's how he would have felt.

"So, Rogers, ready to play with the big kids again?"

Natasha was teasing him. Steve felt a sudden heat reach his ears which were undoubtedly turning slightly pink.

"I heard S.H.I.E.L.D.'s been bringing you up to speed on all the latest tricks of the trade. Even got you out on a few lower level missions. Protocol makes you jump through a few hoops to get back into the game, even if you don't really need to."

Steve raised his eyebrows. Had that been a compliment? Natasha revealed nothing as she picked a carrot stick off of his tray and started nibbling on it across from him.

"Yes, ma'am," he responded after a moment. "Moved here to D.C. and spent the last year brushing up on my skills. Back during the war they just plucked us off the streets and gave us a few months of training before shipping us out. This was a bit more… in depth."

Even though the super soldier serum had taken him from a scrawny kid to the man he was now, Steve had never been trained with such… finesse. During the war, there just simply hadn't been the time. But now, it seemed like he had all the time in the world and Fury had been more than eager to push Steve to even greater limits. Steve had to admit, it had been beneficial.

"Well, we'll see how you like working on a proper mission rather than just doing recruit work. I'd imagine you were running circles around the recruits on your first day... literally," Natasha commented, still chewing on her carrot stick.

Steve did have to laugh at that. "I think Fury was just trying to show me the ropes. He knows what I can do now and, yeah, those missions were a little boring."

Natasha gave him a ghost of a smile. Then she nodded, clearly satisfied with something Steve was not quite privy to. She finished off the carrot in one last bite and snagged another off of Steve's tray before standing again.

"Well, I have paperwork to start. Don't think _that's _recruit work. The higher up the ladder you go, the more it's thrown at you." Natasha turned to leave before stopping in her tracks, as if she had just remembered something.

"Oh, and Rogers? Call me ma'am again and it'll be the last thing you ever say."

What truly terrified Steve was that he could not tell if she was joking or not.

* * *

Clint found Natasha as she was on her way back to her quarters to get started on that paperwork she had told Steve about. He fell into step beside her and Natasha could feel his eyes on her the entire time.

The walk down the corridor was a silent one.

When they turned a corner, Natasha finally sighed and turned to face her partner —correction: former partner, not that Natasha felt she could ever call him that.

"What?"

Clint frowned.

"So that's it? We're done? No attempts to get Fury to change his mind? I mean I couldn't convince him but he listens to you, Nat," Clint spat, clearly irritated.

Natasha knew he wasn't irritated at her. He was angry with Fury, angry with the whole situation. They had been blindsided by it and it didn't sit well with Natasha but she understood why Fury had made the decision he had.

"There's nothing else to do, Clint. Fury has his reasons."

Clint groaned, then kicked at the wall half-heartedly.

"Is that all you care about, Natasha? What Fury says and what he thinks? What about us? What about all we've been through—" He stopped, looking away. Natasha had helped put him back together again. They needed one another, even if neither of them would admit it.

"Dammit, Nat, why do you always have to be right?"

Natasha smirked. It was true, she usually was. Clint just raised an eyebrow at her expression. Of course she would be smug at a time like this. He just rolled his eyes.

"I know, we can do more good apart than together. I guess I just got used to having you watching my back all the time," he admitted.

Natasha nodded. She understood perfectly. When they had first met, she never would have thought she'd come to enjoy having him as her partner. She always worked alone but nowadays? She used to think trust was a weakness that only led to betrayal. Clint had proven her wrong.

"Clint, it'll be good for you to get back out there on your own. You don't need me, you never have." They looked at one another. He knew she meant in the field. The rest? Well, they left that unsaid.

"Yeah… I guess so." He paused, then huffed with amusement. "So Captain America, huh? I know he's good — he's probably one of the best out there with that serum. But he's a soldier, not a spy. What do you think Fury has planned, putting you two together?"

Natasha shrugged. "Fury seems to think I'm the best person to show Rogers the world as it is, rather than as it was."

A loud snort. "Cynical."

"But probably true."

Clint and Natasha were like two sides of the same coin. They knew one another, they could read each other like no one else could. They were a perfect match — perhaps too perfect. As Fury had said, their talents were needed elsewhere. They would benefit S.H.I.E.L.D. more if they were apart. Steve Rogers on the other hand, he was the opposite of Natasha. Where she kept secrets and lied, he valued honesty and openness. Working with him would be…

"Worried you're not up for the challenge?" Clint broke through her thoughts with a lopsided grin.

Natasha just swatted at his arm.

"Yeah right, Barton."

Clint nodded, clearly reassured that his partner would be okay. He looked at her seriously, one last time.

"Just let me be clear: if Rogers screws this up, I'll have his ass."

Natasha laughed. It was rare to hear her laugh and Clint always felt honoured that he was one of the few to hear it.

"I know you will."

* * *

Natasha found herself working through the night. Her reports were meticulous. Clint always seemed to skim over the details, so she filled in what she knew he would leave out. Like the little C4 incident. She wasn't trying to pin the blame, she just knew that Fury would be pissed when he found out and perhaps a proper explanation would placate him, though Natasha doubted it.

She glanced over at the clock: 05:32.

The redhead ran a hand through her hair and put down her pen. Administration would make an electronic copy of her report later. They were slowly trying to convert everything over to digital but that seemed to be the only area where S.H.I.E.L.D. was a bit behind with the times. But, in Natasha's opinion, having hard copies was good. In their line of work, if their servers ever went down, vital information could be lost. Having hard copies lying around might make organization a pain in the ass but, in an emergency, they still had all the information they needed.

Natasha rubbed her eyes. She had gotten very little sleep during her last mission and now she had been back all of sixteen hours and she had not even bothered to rest. She pushed away the report, gently closing the folder and giving it one last lingering look before glancing at her bed.

She had an hour and a half before she needed to be awake again for her debrief with Fury and her next briefing with Rogers. Maybe two hours at most. It wasn't much but it would be enough.

She trusted Fury. More so than she trusted most people, other than Clint. If he thought this new assignment was going to work, then she would not argue. Steve Rogers had proven himself to be a capable leader and a good man. She had no reason not to like him. But she had no reason to trust him. It was just the way Natasha was programmed — there were many reasons to like someone, but trusting them was another thing entirely. Looks could be deceiving, if she was any indication herself. She snorted softly. She tried to imagine the famous Captain America as anything other than he was — loyal to his country, true to his morals, and an upstanding citizen. It was a hard picture to come up with, even for her.

She tapped her fingers against the desk, gathering her thoughts. Rogers would be a valuable agent and ally of S.H.I.E.L.D. but he was not a spy. A part of her did not want to see him drawn into the corrupt world of spies and espionage. The other part of her wondered if he would do what was necessary if the time came.

It looked like they would just have to find out at 08:00.

* * *

**Author's Note: **This chapter was highly introspective and tied together some loose ends for Clint and Natasha after the first chapter. The real story starts in chapter three. I would like to mention that I am hoping for weekly updates right now. If that changes, I will say so. Also, I would like to mention that I am interested in finding a beta writer for this story. I do a majority of the research myself but it would be nice for someone to check my spelling (I am notorious for missing typos) and look for any plot holes. Anyway, in the interest of keeping these short, please review, as it keeps me going.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

* * *

_"If there is no struggle, there is no progress." — Frederick Douglass_

* * *

08:00 came faster than either Natasha or Steve had expected. When Steve arrived outside of Fury's office, he almost felt a bit nervous. S.H.I.E.L.D. was putting their faith in him and Fury had personally taken an interest in integrating Captain America into their ranks. It wasn't that he hadn't lived up to the expectations… it was that he _had._ A part of Steve wondered if working for Fury was the right decision, even with all that S.H.I.E.L.D. had given him so far. It was true that this day and age was very different from the war-riddled era he was from. But when did that become a reason for him to abandon everything he stood for? S.H.I.E.L.D. claimed they fought for peace and freedom from the threats the rest of the world was not capable to face but Steve found the organization's entire presence to be slightly more ominous than they made themselves out to be.

Not five minutes later, Natasha was by his side, already letting herself into Fury's office. This dragged Steve from his thoughts and he followed closely, quietly shutting the door behind them. Giving the red-haired agent a sidelong glance, Steve frowned. It was hard to read the woman, he couldn't deny that, but the tell-tale signs of exhaustion were hard to hide, especially when they manifested in dark circles under her eyes. She must have barely slept. A part of him wanted to ask if she was okay but another told him to steer clear and get straight to the briefing as she clearly intended to do.

Fury sat at his desk, looking over a folder with his good eye. He wordlessly slid forward two copies and the agent and the captain slipped into their seats unbidden, both quick to begin skimming through the briefs. Then he looked up, noting the other folder in his female agent's lap.

"Agent Romanoff, I received Agent Barton's report on your last mission this morning. I see you have yours for me now… is there anything else we need to discuss or should I let the paperwork do the talking this time?"

Natasha shook her head and handed him her report. Fury made a noise of acknowledgement and put it to the side on his desk for later. Barton's report had been underwhelming, as usual. Natasha's would likely prove to be the more enlightening of the two once again. But that was not important right now. Fury folded his hands together over the papers spread out in front of him.

"Now… as you can see, we face a potential security threat," Fury started, watching the both of them. Natasha wore a stony expression and Steve kept stealing glances at her from time to time between sentences. That was interesting indeed. "We've been informed of a leak — a double agent selling S.H.I.E.L.D. secrets to foreign pirates. We don't know why or what these pirates want this information for but I want you two to put a lid on this situation. It's an isolated incident and I would prefer to keep it that way. You have permission to contain this leak by any means necessary but I don't need to remind Agent Romanoff that discretion is valuable to S.H.I.E.L.D."

Fury's next look was pointed at Steve specifically. Steve knew why. He operated differently than the average S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. To storm into the situation by force as a soldier left them open to publicity, something Fury would want to avoid. Steve looked over at Natasha again, quickly looking away when he found her meeting his gaze unexpectedly. Why did Fury want him on a mission like this? An information leak was something he was sure Natasha could have gone in and contained by herself without leaving a trace of evidence behind her. This must have been what Fury had been talking about — having Natasha show him how things had changed. Fury wanted to see if Steve had what it took to become a real spy.

"Are there any other mission parameters, sir?" Steve asked, clearing his throat sharply.

Fury eyed him carefully.

"No. I am leaving this up to you two to decide how to proceed. There will be a jet waiting for you in three hours. I'm sure that is enough time to read the brief you have been given, get your things, and start on a plan of action. My priority is to get results, Captain, but I am personally curious to see how you choose to get them."

Beside him, Natasha closed the folder in her lap and nodded. She moved to stand and Steve hurriedly moved to join her. Fury exchanged one last look with the two of them before nodding once himself and gesturing towards the door.

"You're both dismissed. Good luck, Captain, Agent Romanoff."

* * *

"Agent Romanoff, wait up for a second," Steve called after he left Fury's office, noticing that the redhead was already briskly making her way down the hallway, back the way that she had come earlier.

Natasha turned, tilting her head in silent question.

"We need a plan. I, uh…" He fumbled over his words momentarily.

Her gaze was boring a hole right into him and it was both flustering and unnerving. Steve wasn't even sure if she did this intentionally — he was beginning to believe she was just naturally intimidating to be around. He respected her and from what little he had learned about her together on the helicarrier and in New York, he could almost say that he liked her. But now things were different and he was in her domain. To say he wasn't a bit anxious would have been a lie. In the heat of battle and crisis, everyone had pulled together and worked with one another almost seamlessly. But now he barely even knew how to approach her.

"Would you care to get some breakfast with me?" he asked, trying again. He hadn't gotten anything to eat prior to their briefing and Steve was beginning to realize how hungry he was. "I thought we could discuss the mission in the cafeteria, if you want."

"Sure, Rogers."

Natasha flipped her red curls over her shoulder and started in the other direction, towards the cafeteria. Steve jogged to catch up and fell into stride next to her. They walked in silence. Steve had a feeling she didn't usually talk much and while most of the silences between them felt awkward, this one was comfortable. They had a mission — that was what they needed to focus on.

* * *

Steve settled down with a large plate of eggs, bacon, and toast. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s cafeteria food wasn't the best but a good helping of a traditional breakfast was always good to Steve. Across from him, Natasha was flipping through the brief in front of her, absently picking at an omelette. Her focus was admirable. Steve was still getting used to how much background noise there was in this century. Everything was electronic now and it all seemed to produce white noise. It was hard to adjust to, he had noticed.

"So, these pirates… anyone we know?" By 'we', he meant S.H.I.E.L.D.. None of the names in his brief rang any bells to him. Natasha, on the other hand, might have some better insight.

"They're a Ukrainian group that operates out of the Black Sea. A low-level threat as far as S.H.I.E.L.D. was concerned until now," Natasha informed him. "Drug smugglers mostly. They eventually formed a splinter group that operates out of the U.S. to increase their business but we've lost track of them. Whatever they've been up to with our rogue agent, they're covering it up well. We think they've returned to the Ukraine with whatever intelligence they stole, not wanting to risk staying in the country with it."

Steve nodded, flipping through his own folder slowly. He slid a photo closer to him, taking in the features of the man in it.

"And this is our double agent?"

"Agent Roy Levsky. From his record, you wouldn't think that he would go rogue but looks can be deceiving," Natasha responded.

"So we go in, we grab Levsky, bring him back for questioning, and bring in backup to seize the ship these pirates operate from," Steve said, looking up at Natasha.

Natasha pressed her lips together, glancing between him and the file.

"It's never that simple, Rogers. Levsky is a security risk. Neutralizing him is our best option at this point. He's a double agent; he won't tell us anything. As for the pirates, we find their leader, secure him for interrogation, and wipe out the rest of the ship once we recover any stolen intelligence. We only need one man to talk and the rest will only put up resistance."

She delivered her plan with such calm collection that Steve had to pause to process what she was saying. Fury wanted them to go in there and kill anyone they didn't need for later? He didn't like that. All of those pirates were just as guilty as the next for some crime or another but that didn't give S.H.I.E.L.D. the right to play judge and jury.

"Problem, Rogers?"

Steve cleared his throat.

"Actually, yes. We're looking for one guy: our double agent. The rest shouldn't be blindly executed for a crime they may not have even committed," he argued.

"Everyone aboard that ship is a threat to S.H.I.E.L.D. Fury wouldn't be ordering us to risk an an incident in international waters if we didn't have reason to be concerned about the information they have their hands on. Levsky was a level seven agent. He has as much clearance as you and I. He's our target, yes. But don't think anyone on that ship will just surrender because you ask them to."

Steve glared. He wasn't that naïve and Natasha was acting as if he expected their enemies to just lie down and roll over on command. He just didn't believe in slaughtering an entire crew just in case they talked. Surely there was a better way? He couldn't tell why she was giving him the look that she was. She looked tired and… annoyed?

"We only have two hours until wheels up. I suggest you grab what you need and head to the hangar bay. We can argue about this later," Natasha said flatly, closing her folder and picking up her empty plate.

Before Steve could even retort, Natasha was gone in a flurry of black fabric and red curls. He sat at the cafeteria table, staring down at the photo of the man beneath his fingers. He sighed. This was going to be a long mission.

* * *

Natasha closed the door to her room and tossed the file down on her bed. She'd memorized its contents and wouldn't need it anymore. She ran a hand through her hair, making her way into the bathroom where she stared into the mirror.

She already missed Clint. She was so used to their way of agreeing on everything without having to say a word. When they did argue, there was a natural flow to their conflict that practically resolved itself before they were even finished. They were both trained assassins. It wasn't the same as… this. She had thought that she had accepted Fury's decision to break up Strike Team: Delta. His reasons were sound. There was no reason why she should have been as torn up over this as she was except…

Steve frustrated her. It wasn't intentional, she just wasn't used to working with someone who wanted to save everyone, even the criminals if there was a better fate for them than death. He wanted to see the criminals pay but through justice, not death. Natasha, on the other hand, would kill anyone necessary to complete her mission. She and Steve operated by different codes and his was the more honourable of the two, she thought. Steven Rogers… he didn't like killing unless he had to. If there was another way, he would try to find it. She couldn't fault him — he had a good heart — she just didn't know how to work with someone like that.

Natasha frowned at her reflection. What did that say about her? She was so used to killing without a second thought that she couldn't begin to understand someone who was so hesitant. She groaned. This was going to be a long mission.

* * *

They met by the jet ten minutes early. Natasha was the first one there, clad in her signature S.H.I.E.L.D. uniform, checking over her utility belt while the pilot rambled off the pre-flight checks and informed her how long the flight was going to be.

"Thanks, Carey. Just give us a few minutes and we'll be ready to go," she said, glancing over her shoulder at the pilot.

He gave the redhead a thumbs up and adjusted his headset as he turned and settled back into his seat.

"Agent Romanoff," Steve greeted, giving her a polite nod.

"Rogers."

"Look, about earlier—"

"Don't," Natasha said suddenly, looking straight into Steve's eyes. He couldn't tell if she was angry or not. "We're supposed to be partners. We have to find a way to work together and if that's going to be a problem, we should get that out in the open now."

Steve stared. He had been trying to apologize. He had meant every word that he'd said but he knew his temper had been close to reaching the surface. He didn't want to argue with her. He just wanted to do this mission without having to… what? Fall to her level? He ran a hand through his hair when he realized how that sounded.

"Agent Romanoff… Natasha." Her eyes flashed momentarily. "I'm not Agent Barton, I get it. We don't have the same connection or training and we're not going to see things eye-to-eye for awhile, I bet. But I'm willing to try to make this work if you are."

Natasha paused. She had been harsher than she had intended. She nodded, then gestured at the jet. They needed to get going. Steve took that as a good sign and waited for her to board before following after her. He dropped his shield and cowl onto the seat next to him and sat down. Natasha shared a few words with the pilot and then they were cleared for departure. He waited until she was seated before speaking again.

"So, we didn't agree on a plan. We need to get our guy, that much is clear. What do we do?"

Natasha looked at him for a long moment before shifting slightly. She inclined her head and looked back up at him.

"We'll try it your way, Rogers. You're right, you're not Barton. We're very different people but… Fury seems to think you can learn something from me… or perhaps from each other." She shrugged. "So it's your call, Rogers. I still think we should just clear the place out to avoid any of this spreading but if you want to bring in prisoners, I'll make the call. Just be prepared to do whatever you have to if this doesn't go down the way you plan."

Steve was satisfied with that answer. He wasn't sure but he knew that if he were in Natasha's position, he might have been hesitant too. This was her world and here she was, offering to let a stranger in to change all the rules. He doubted their clashing opinions would vanish just like that but she was extending him the benefit of the doubt. Steve just hoped that he was right. If he underestimated these pirates, someone could get hurt. Proper justice would be no good if either of them wound up dead. But Steve Rogers had learned to survive war… he could learn to survive this century. He looked at Natasha honestly.

"I'm always prepared, ma'am."

"What did I say about calling me that, Captain?"

This time, Natasha smirked and Steve was relieved to see that she wasn't entirely angry at him.

"Apologies, Agent Romanoff—"

"Natasha."

"—_Natasha_."

* * *

**Author's Note: **Man, I apologize for the delay. After my last update, my laptop's keyboard stopped working. Once I got it fixed, I was busy doing NaNoWriMo (racked up 45K in the first 24 hours, about 110K by the end of the first week), and then the holidays came around and I was busy with a death in the family, university applications, and job interviews. I'm hoping to get back to this story now, even though I'm going to be working. My inspiration has come back and the next update will really start getting into things. Thanks so much for your patience, I didn't realize all of this was going to happen. As usual, please review/follow!


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